The Roman Catholic Parish of St. Vincent de Paul 250 Bebout Avenue Stirling, New Jersey 07980 Phone: (908) 647-0118 Fax: (908) 647-5992 Parish Office—908-647-0118 In an emergency call 973-222-0720 Parish website: stvincentschurch.org Parish email: [email protected]PASTORAL STAFF Fr. A. Richard Carton, Pastor [email protected]Fr. William (Bill) Mooney Weekend Assistant Elena Bird Zolnick Director of Sacred Music 907-953-0128 [email protected]Vincent G. Clarke, Organist 908-647-4926 Sr. Krystyna Dziadkowiec Pastoral Associate [email protected]Sr. Elsa Jeronimo, C.S.JB. Director of Social Outreach [email protected]Deirdre Nemeth Director of Religious Formation 908-647-0421 [email protected]Amilee Beer Youth/Confirmation Coordinator 908-295-8104 [email protected]Peter O’Neill, Deacon 908-647-7258 [email protected]Parish Trustees Alan Tangreti and Timothy Wallisch PARISH OFFICE STAFF Vera Castagna Parish Secretary Maria DeLuca Religious Formation Secretary Teri Kesselmeyer Technology and Communications Mary Woods Parish Finance Coordinator We are a Catholic community rooted in the Eucharist and committed to the poor. Sunday Mass Schedule (Vigil Mass) Saturday —5:00PM Sunday 8:30AM and 10:30AM Confession: Saturday at 4PM or other days by appointment. Weekday Mass Schedule 8:30AM Monday - Saturday “It would be easier for the world to survive without the sun than to do so without the Holy Mass.” St. Padre Pio
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The Roman Catholic Parish of St. Vincent de Paul 250 Bebout Avenue
Stirling, New Jersey 07980 Phone: (908) 647-0118 Fax: (908) 647-5992
“It is not how much we give, but how much love we put into giving.” St. Teresa of Calcutta
While we have had no fundraisers yet for our sister parish, St. Paul’s in Haiti, $10,075 has been donated to the sister parish by generous parishioners. $5,ooo was wired to Fr. Theo recently so that they can move forward in providing a rectory for him to live in. The project is estimated to cost $26,000. Once completed, the next project is the church building. If you feel moved to participle in assisting the project at this time, simply send your gift made out to St. Vincent de Paul and write Haiti Project in the memo line. Once members of our twinning committee are back from summer vacation we will be planning more. At this time it is expected that Fr. Theo will be here during the last week of September to visit our parish. This will also coincide with our patronal feast day and the annual volunteer appreciation dinner. For more information and to see pictures of our recent visit to Haiti please see the parish website.
OUR PARISH HAITI PROJECT
August 19th and 20th Page Three
Each year I look forward to the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary which we observed on Tuesday of this past week. The rhythm of the memorials, feasts and solemnities of the Church remind us of the great glory that God has bestowed on the Blessed Mother and our sisters and brothers in the Communion of Saints. Each day the readings from Scripture at Mass and the offering of the Mass remind us that God’s desire is to bring us to the glory which Christ has won for us. The Blessed Mother, assumed body and soul into Heaven, is the first, in proper order, to benefit from the resurrection of Jesus. Like the Blessed Mother we give our fiat, our yes, then we live it out through the grace of God who wants us to come to glory forever. In the writings of St. Augustine, Sermon 169 we read: But God made you without you. You didn’t, after all, give any consent to God making you. How were you to consent, if you didn’t yet exist? So while he made you without you, he doesn’t justify you without you. So he made you without your knowing it, he justifies you with your willing consent to it. Yet it’s he that does the justifying…” I understand that as stating that God made us without any help from us, however, if we want to be saved we must participate in the process and be faithful to what the Savior asks of us. The Church does not teach that we are to observe Sunday and Holydays of Obligation so that we are interrupted in the doing of the things we would rather be doing. In her wisdom the Church, empowered by the Holy Spirit and faithful to her Lord, teaches us to observe the Lord’s Day (Sunday) and the Holydays of Obligation so that they break in and remind us of who we are in this world. Every day Christ and His bride the Church break in to our lives so that we can know of the great rebirth which was ours through the womb of our mother, the Church, from the day of our baptism when we were clothed with the garment of salvation. We were commissioned on that day to keep our baptismal dignity free from the stain of sin. Responding to the invitation to honor the Sabbath and Holydays of Obligation is the insistence of the Church so that we may render God fitting worship and praise and so that we may not get lost in the passing things of this world. Every time I go to Mass, to prayer, to serve, make decisions and choices as a Christian I am reminded of who I have been created to be and what my true destiny is. This is how we give our consent to God and come to obedient faith so that God may bring us to the fullness of glory. More than ever before, the world is in need of the Church. This nation is in need of the Church and the message of the Gospel. It will not be political rhetoric that will change the tensions within our nation but Christians who live their commitment to Christ as he intended it. The events in Charlottesville last weekend were nothing short of the horrors of hell. As John Stonestreet of the Colson Center wrote, “The book of Revelation, chapter 7, gives us an extraordinary vision from God of the kingdom of Heaven in its fullness: “a great multitude … from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne of God and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the Lamb.” What we saw this past weekend in Charlottesville was the exact, fiendish opposite. Crowds filled with hate, bent on violence. We saw not dazzling robes of white washed in the blood of the lamb, but the stains of red from human blood spilled in demonic anger…. racism is the very antithesis of the love of Jesus for all. I’ll expand on that thought: every racist ideology, including the white nationalism and neo-Nazi rhetoric and images displayed by the so-called alt-right in Charlottesville, is rooted in the pit of hell. There’s no defending it. It’s not Christian. It’s not American. ” Sr. Kathryn J. Hermes, FSP at Pauline Books and Media Blog reflects: “My choice for eternity is first to recognize that this event makes me uncomfortable because it exposes the effects of “original sin” in myself. It’s one thing to say, “we need to stop fighting” (YouTube video of Christian LaCros). It’s another to say, “That person is me.” The choice for eternity is a choice of truth combined with courage and care. It is neither courageous nor truthful to turn the situation to one’s personal or political advantage by taking cheap potshots at friends and followers on social media who don’t share your personal viewpoints. We can feel like we’re contributing “to the cause” by chiming in with the growing social media furor. But are we really? Does it seem like we’re doing something significant, just because we’ve posted about it? We’ve made our mark on history by telling people who’s who and what’s what? The prophet acts with courage in the service of the truth. He or she does so with care because the truth is something that demands a new way of seeing, a new vision of what weaves all of us together. We must enter, every one of us, into the distress of the world, not to contribute to the strife, but to hold it to our hearts, in this darkness, in this social, economic, and political breakdown on a global scale, in the bubbling over of the racism that still tears at the soul of America. None of us can remove themselves from this.”
Imagine if every Christian lived their life fully in rhythm with the movement of God who, through the Holy Spirit, calls us to be who we profess to be. What a difference that would make. Alone we can do nothing, but as the Blessed Mother will tell you, with God nothing is impossible.
Peace,
Fr. Richard
FYI: I will be away from the parish from August 20th until September 3rd. Fr. Bill will cover Masses while I am away.
CHANGE MUST COME….
August 19th and 20th Page FourREADINGS FOR NEXT SUNDAY
First Reading: Isaiah 22:19-23 This passage refers to the use of authority and indicates the Key as the symbol of authority. The words “open” and “shut” refer to the power that will eventually be given to Peter. Second Reading: Romans 11:33-36 Paul writes ecstatic and praise-filled words about God’s plan for his people. In him, he writes, “all things are.” Gospel: Matthew 16:13-20 When Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter exclaims, “You are the Messiah!” Christ then declares that Peter is the “Rock” upon which he will build his Church, promising him the power “to bind” and “to loose.”
PLEASE REMEMBER IN YOUR PRAYERS Those who serve in the military:
Nick Ragazzo, Stephen J. Campbell, Sean Milde, Frank Fasano, Richard Lister, Eric Leverone, Jay Donato, Frank Messina, Eileen Murphy, Peter Giovanni, John E. Siedler IV
Those who are ill: John Daglian, Parker Watson, Michael Principe, Annette McGrory, Mary Bigelis, Marian Zoll, Lou Aroneo, Patrick Bergin, Joseph Rota, Nelson Vitorino, Lynne Coombs, Lucy Bustillos, Paula Matchen, May Hill, Caitlin Shea, Bill Wallisch, Larry and Aileen Oster, Nanci Gamba, Elizabeth Early, Serenity Rose Apuzzo, Helen Munro, Mary Keller, and Eric Binner.
Those who have died to this world Judith Courter, Sister Anna Karwat,
Adele Brownlee and Raymond Fernandes, Sr. Requiescat in Pace
May all the faithful who have departed this world rest in your eternal peace. Amen
Reborn through the waters of B aptism and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, we embrace:
Vanna Joy DeBolt daughter of Chad and Kathryn
Dylan John DeRonde son of Christopher and Laurie
The Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) is a process through which adults may become full members of the Roman Catholic Church. The RCIA is immersed in revealing the treasures of our faith to those who seek and yearn for a deeper life in Jesus. If you or someone you know is not baptized or is baptized in another Christian tradition and is being called to enter the Roman Catholic Church, the RCIA process is for you. If you are a baptized Catholic adult but have not received Confirmation this is also for you. For more information please contact Fr. Richard.
RCIA—Christian Initiation for Adults
ROSARY ALTAR SOCIETY
The Rosary Altar Society will meet on Tuesday, September 5th We will gather in the chapel to pray the
Rosary at 7:00pm and our first meeting will follow at 7:30pm in the Church Meeting Room. Women of
the parish are invited to join us and are welcome to become new members. If you would like to have a candle lit in
remembrance of a loved one before the statue of the Blessed Mother and/or St. Joseph call the parish office to choose a date. This is a beautiful way
to memorialize a loved one.
St. Vincent de Paul Parish invites all 1st through 10th grade students to enroll in our Faith Formation program. Registration is now available on-line. We offer a unique program that combines classroom sessions with family faith events all centered around the three Sunday Masses.
Visit https://stvincentschurch.org/1st-8th-faith-formation-overview to register your child. Information is also available there regarding the Program and the Schedule. Thank you to those who have already registered. For further information please contact Deirdre Nemeth, the Director of Faith Formation, by email [email protected] or by calling the Faith Formation office at 908-647-0421.
ST. VINCENT DE PAUL FAITH FORMATION
Bridges Outreach will be resuming in September. The date for our first Run as well as the link to sign up for food and supplies will be included in upcoming bulletins.
The Meals for Moms Ministry seeks to support families who have just welcomed a new baby. We are happy to provide several meals to the family during this special time.
Please contact Dan ie l le Gr ieco at [email protected] for more information.
If you would like to join our ministry, please contact Danielle. It simply involves cooking one meal when you are able.
“Give your hands to serve and your hearts to love.” St. Teresa of Calcutta
Oratory Preparatory School is hosting an Open House on Sunday, October 1st from 1pm to 3pm
and on Thursday, October 19th from 6:45 to 8:15pm. Faculty and students will be giving tours and
answer questions for prospective 7th thru 12th grade boys and their families. For more
information call 908-273-1084, ext. 1 or visit their website at www.oratoryprep.org
PARISH PLAY GROUP
The Parish Playgroup meets from 9:15am to 10:30am at the parish playground. A few babysitters from the parish are present to give Moms some down time and time to connect as well!
The next playgroup will meet on Wednesday August 23rd. If you haven’t been able to join us yet make this month your first!
Join us for 8:30am Mass before we meet in the playground. For more information contact Josephine Costanzo [email protected].
KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS BLOOD DRIVE
The Knights of Columbus are sponsoring a Blood Drive on Monday, August 28th from 3:30pm to 8:30pm in the gym. Donor
registration will take place in the vestibule of the church after Masses this weekend and next weekend. Please consider being a blood donor. For further information please contact Ken Schaefer at 732-356-6148.
St. Vincent de Paul’s 15th Annual Women’s Retreat,
Fr. Dennis Berry, from the Shrine of St. Joseph, will be this year’s Spiritual Director for the
Retreat which will take place on Friday, September 15th through
Sunday, September 17th. The theme for this year’s Retreat is
Becoming Communion with God, One Another and All Creation.
The Retreat will be held at Delbarton Retreat Center, Mendham, NJ.
The fee is $215 which includes single or double room accommodations and 5 meals.
Registration is available online at https://stvincentschurch.org/2017-registration.
For questions please call the Parish House 908-647-0118
The Diocese of Paterson is hosting the 2017 Marian Pilgrimage this October. The trip will take place on Saturday, October 21st. We urge you to participate in this year’s Diocesan Pilgrimage to the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.
We ask that you sign up as soon as possible because space is limited. This Pilgrimage will provide the opportunity for you to join parishioners throughout the diocese in a prayer-filled day that includes Mass, Confession, Rosary, Divine Mercy and Catechetical presentations.
For further information and to sign up please contact Vera or Sr. Elsa at the Parish House 908-647-0118 or by email [email protected] or [email protected].
MARIAN PILGRIMAGE TO THE BASILICA OF THE NATIONAL SHRINE OF THE
IMMACULATE CONCEPTION
GRIEF RECOVERY There is a process to dealing with grief. You are invited to learn of the gentle 4 step experiential process for resolving the grief caused by loss.
This program will be offered on Sunday, August 20th from 1pm to 5:30pm.
The presenter will be Mary Jo Kearns, RSM Registration is required by calling 908-753-
Our parish Food Pantry is in need of tomato sauce, tomato paste, canned pinto beans, canned navy beans, canned kidney beans, dry small red beans, pancake mix, jelly, corn, green beans, peas, canned mixed veggies, canned beets, peanut butter and only Honey Nut Cheerios cereal. Items are to be dropped off in the baskets marked “Food Pantry” in the vestibule of the church. Thank you for donating.
The World Apostolate of Fatima, Blue Army Shrine in Asbury, NJ invites you to come
and honor St. Padre Pio, Spiritual Father of the Blue Army. On Saturday, August 26th, celebrate the 38th Annual Padre Pio Day beginning with Confession at 11:00am; followed by the Angelus at 12noon. There will be a procession
of the Blessed Sacrament at 12:15pm followed by a Holy Hour with Fr. Andrew Apostoli, C.F.R at 12:30pm. Mass will be celebrated at 1:30pm by Bishop Gerald Walsh, D.D., Auxiliary Bishop, Diocese of New York.
A Jubilee Year of Plenary Indulgence has been granted to this Shrine. For more information call 908-689-1700 ext. 210 or email www.bluearmy.com.
SHRINE OF SAINT JOSEPH
The Shrine will host a two-day workshop entitled : “The Healing of Mind, Body and Spirit.”
The presenter will be Fr. Tony D’Souza, S.J. The workshop will be held on Friday,
September 22nd from 7:00pm to 9:00pm and on Saturday, September 23rd from
9:00am to 5:00pm in the Shrine Auditorium. The workshop will conclude with Mass.
The suggested donation is $30 and includes lunch. If interested, please rsvp online to stshrine.org or
by calling 908-647-0208.
SUPPORT GROUP FOR DIVORCED OR SEPARATED
Are you or someone you know separated or divorced? The Divorced and Separated Ministry of the Church of the Little Flower in Berkeley Heights is offering a twelve week support group designed to provide comfort and healing before, during and after the divorce process. The group will meet on Wednesdays, 7:30pm to 9pm starting September 20th through December 13th in the Parish Center School Building.
The program features video presentations from The Catholic Divorce Survival Guide followed by discussion. Some of the topics to be covered are: Finding Strength and Help; Getting Through Your Anger; Learning to Forgive; Handling Money Wisely; and Relearning How to Date.
The group is open to all denominations. Registration is required. For more information and to register, please see the church ’s website lfbhnj.org, contact [email protected], or call the church office at 908-464-1585.
Family and friend support group sessions are offered at Trinity House, Stirling for family and friends of those effected by addiction. These meetings are held the last Wednesday of each month at 7:30pm. The next meeting will be August 30th The evening features discussions, speakers, spiritual consolation and light refreshments. If you or someone you know is suffering and would benefit from an evening of sharing and community support please consider attending one or more of these sessions.
RECOVERY MINISTRY AT THE SHRINE
Just Us Kids is offering a full day Pre K and Kindergarten curriculum for the 2017-2018 academic school year. Classes will be held in the Faith Formation and Pastoral Center at St. Vincent de Paul Parish. The Learning Center is directed by the former St. Vincent de Paul School administrator and
Early Childhood teacher Mrs. Maryann Pratola.
The Learning Center features a family and faith based curriculum that follows Core Standards and is differentiated to meet the needs of each student.
The class curriculum program begins on Tuesday, September 5th and will continue through the school year ending in June, 2018
Registration is available by visiting the website justuskidslearningcenter.us. For questions and further information please contact Mrs. Pratola at 908-834-8205/908-963-3643 or by email to [email protected].
